Cyclist In Good Trial For Title

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31305, 27 February 1967, Page 16

Cyclist In Good Trial For Title

J. H. Cleary (Papanui), who will defend his national kilometre time trial title in 10 days, did a fine preliminary at English Park yesterday morning. In a meeting for the national championship riders, and in weather too hot and dry for comfortable riding, Cleary broke the resident record for the flying half-mile.

His time of fs.4sec was ,2sec faster than V. L. Newlove’s time, set in 1966 at Kew Bowl, Southland. The New Zealand open record is 53.65ec, set in January, also at Kew Bowl, by the Australian, H. J. Clarke. Cleary’s quarter-mile times were 26.55ec and 28.9 sec, but his finishing quarter was almost matched by the outstanding junior, B. G. Stockwell, the second-fastest of the four riders competing in the half-mile time trials. Stockwell did the halfmile in 56.8 sec, and the second quarter in 29.25ec. There was a brief series of sprints, in which some of the specialists were beaten, but more interest was taken in the tandem pair, D. A. Swanston and R. D. Mann, and a three miles.

The tandem riders, who have ridden together only for a month, cut their time to 12.2 sec. In this form on Denton Park, they would probably threaten the New Zealand record of tl.lsec.

The small three-mile field of nine—including W. W. Thorpe making a brief reappearancereturned a good time of 6min 36.55ec. Cleary won, clearing off just before the bell, and Mann sprinted the bunch in fine style, confirming his good finishing powers. Results:

500-Metre Sprints. First round: G. W. Wood beat B. G. Stockwell and A. A, Paviell, 13.9. R. D. Mann beat S. J. Stephen and D. A. Swanston, 13.5. J. H. Cleary beat R. J. Hogan and C. B. Fitzgerald, 13.1. Second round: Mann beat Stephen and Wood, 13.5. Fitzgerald beat Swanston and Paviell, 13.8.

Flying Half-m-ile.—Cleary 55.4 (New Zealand resident record), Stockwell 56.8, Fitzgerald 56.9, Stephen 58.7. Tandem Time Trials.—Swanston and Mann, 12.9, 12.3, 12.2. 4600 Metres Individual Pursuit.

—Stockwell, 5:28.6, beat Hogan, 5:43.6 (personal best). Three Miles.—Cleary 1, Mann 2, Hogan 3. Time, 6:36.5.